Wizard Of Odds Weekly Update August 12, 2017
BRIDGE JUMPER
Warning: Let me warn you that this blog entry is morbid in nature. If discussion of dead bodies bothers you, stop reading now.
Usually when I use the term "bridge jumper" I refer to a bet like the no safety in the Superbowl. They call them bridge jumpers because you have to lay about 8 to 1 odds. If you win, which you expect to do, you mostly just get your own money back, so it doesn't mean much to you. However, when you lose, you feel like jumping off a bridge. Especially after the fourth safety in seven consecutive Super Bowls, but that is another story.
On Sunday I saw the body of a real life bridge jumper. I was doing the Black Canyon kayak trip, which Lisa wrote an article about in 2009. This trip is one of my favorite activities in Vegas and I highly recommend it for anybody who is in decent shape. This was about the 5th time I've done it, this time with my boot camp group.
When Desert Adventures took us down to the launch site at 6:00 AM I helped carry the kayaks from the trailer to the beach. Most guests helped to carry their own kayak but some were not strong enough so I made multiple trips. Meanwhile, everybody else was evidently claiming one and launching. In the end, there were about 25 guests and 24 spots in the kayaks. Guess who didn't get one? The guy who was the most helpful lugging them to the beach. File that under no good deed goes unpunished.
The staff was very apologetic and said they had never seen that happen before. After making some calls, they said they would have to take me back to the Hoover Dam Lodge and I could launch with the 7:00 AM group. Due to dam rules, I could not just wait by the beach by myself. Without any choice, that is what I did. Let the record show that the company later sent me an Email saying they put a $65 credit in my name towards a future trip (the total cost is around $100).
When I finally get back to the spot I started a couple in a tandem kayak from the 6:00 AM group was just off the shore and warned us there was a dead body floating in the river. The staff let me go first and I said I didn't mind the dead body in the river. The 6:00 AM couple suggested I stay far to the left of the river if I didn't want to get close to the body.
About five minutes later, I saw a lump floating in the river. Per the advice I was given, I paddled around it as far as I could and at a pretty good speed. There was no way to tell it was a human body from this distance but I assumed that it was.
I then met up with the rest of my group and we took a side trip to the Gold Strike hot spring. The hot spring was totally washed out, by the way, due to recent flash floods. This was true of the other two hot springs along the trip as well. However, we still spent about an hour exploring up the canyon, hoping to find a pool deep enough to sit in, but never did. During this hour the dead body was quite the topic of conversation. I felt a bit left out of it because I went by it so far and fast. Eventually, with a 4:00 deadline to keep in mind, we got back in our kayaks.
Shortly after more paddling downstream I notice a familiar looking lump floating in the water. Sure enough it was Mr. Body* again. He floated past Gold Strike Canyon while were were exploring it, giving us the opportunity for a second viewing. After hearing so much talk about it I couldn't resist getting a close look this second time around. .. Continue Reading